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Biotechnology and synthetic biology have the potential to help cure diseases, fight poverty, and improve the environment. The power of this field is being recognized worldwide, and countries are cultivating their local biotech and synthetic biology sectors.
China is no exception. Already between 2000 and 2005, the biotech industry in China grew at 30 percent annually.
Following Obama’s 2009 announcement to devote three percent of GDP to R&D, China pledged to spend $9.2 billion by the end of 2010, showing their determination to be a key player in innovative areas such as the biotech industry. Around this time, China’s biotech industry also began focusing more on domestic innovation, including stem cells, cancer and HIV, rather than mainly focusing on routine manufacturing of biogenerics.
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This is not to say that the growth of biotechnology and synthetic biology is smooth sailing. An article in 2015 claimed that systematic approaches addressing ethical, legal, equity and societal considerations of synthetic biology were not in place. The public engagement seen with the UK Synthetic Biology Roadmap of 2012 is not yet being emulated, and neither is responsible research being considered much.
Read full, original post: The Growing Tide of China Biotech Investment
